It’s a crime to go to Bangkok without trying anything tom yum related. Milky, tangy and addictively spicy, it is no wonder that this hearty Thai staple is a hot favourite amongst locals and tourists alike.
Tom yum soup is readily available almost anywhere in Bangkok and it isn’t hard to chance upon a stall that sells it. However, if you’re on a tom yum hunt with a group of ravenous friends, we recommend that you pop by The Place 168 to share their massive Tom Yum Koong Soup.
The Place 168 is a humble Thai restaurant tucked away at a rundown building near Pratunam Market. The small shop has a pretty extensive menu filled with authentic Thai dishes but they are most famous for their gargantuan bowls of Tom Yum Koong Soup.
At just 195 baht, each colossal bowl of this piping hot goodness comes brimming with ingredients such as pork belly, squid, prawns, meatballs, spring onions, two runny eggs and lime slices.
All these lie atop a bed of springy noodles which is then doused in ladlefuls of hot and tangy tom yum broth. We’d say that a bowl of this could easily feed 2 to 4 people.
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We love how generous they were with the ingredients and each and every one of them added something special to the bowl. The pork belly had a decent fat to meat ratio and was fried to a crackling crisp, providing the dish with a nice crunch. On the other hand, while we thought that the squid and prawns were a nice addition, they were disappointingly stale.
The noodles, on the other hand, were springy and cooked to a nice al dente and we love how it soaked up all the spicy goodness of that full-bodied tom yum broth. However, we recommend that you slurp up the noodles fast as they do become soggy rather quickly.
The Place 168
1/49 Phetchaburi Road
Khwaeng Thanon Phaya Thai, Khet Ratchathewi
Krung Thep Maha Nakhon 10400, Thailand
Tel: +66 2 657 0880
Daily: 10.30am – 9.30pm
Read: Bangkok food guides on the best places to discover in the city.